Despite some reservations, I decided to order my first replica sword. I purchased a Windlass Italian Cut and Thrust sword from Museum Replicas LImited. I am very impressed by the beauty and apparent quality of the hilt ( I have long admired the artistic metal work on objects made in India) and the blade seems well tempered, if a bit stiff. In addition, I received good service from the retailer, and was pleased by the sharpening The scabbard is acceptable. However, I am not qualified to further judge the sword.

I have never held an original or high end replica sword of that period, so I can't say if it handles well, is properly balanced, is constructed in an authentic manner, if the blade is appropriate, etc.

I wonder if anybody more experienced can comment on this sword. Any comments could help me gain a frame of reference for future purchases.

Alan,
Congrats on your first post. :) Congrats also on your first purchase. I haven't seen that sword in person, so I can't comment on it too much. However, a sword with thrusting ability needs at least a little stiffness in the blade. Some thrust-oriented swords were quite stiff. So Windlass may not be too far off. One criticism I had of Windlass for a long time was that every sword had about the same amount of flex regardless of type or purpose. Maybe that's changing.

Chad, thanks for your comments. Last night I found that the point of balance on the blade was 3 1/4- 3 1/2 inches from the crossguard. Is this about where you would expect a thrusting sword's balance point to be? I assume that the large pommel is intended to balance out the blade. By the way, I found photos of similar appearing authentic swords which were from the mid 16th century.